Studies have revealed that about 9% of the population is believed to misuse opiates including prescribed pain medications such as Oxycontin and even illegal drugs like heroin at some point in the course of their lifetime. These drugs cause physical dependence and hence the person has to rely on them to prevent symptoms of withdrawal. Slowly and gradually greater amounts of the drug becomes essential in order to create the same effect. When the drugs are stopped withdrawal symptoms start arising because the body requires a considerable amount of time to recover.
Therefore, if anybody related to you is undergoing opiate detox recovery then there are some things that you need to keep in mind. First of all it is important to understand that although completing an opiate detox program successfully is a big achievement it does not necessarily imply that the patient has successfully recovered from their drug and alcohol addiction. This is in fact is just the beginning! A patient has to maintain complete abstinence from drugs to ensure recovery which is quite a challenge in itself.
The major concern for all drug rehabilitation centers remains relapse because most of the patients after successfully completing the detox program are not able to ward off a relapse. For the patient it is quite the struggle to refrain from going back to drugs. Here are some things that you should know about drug detox recovery:
- The first and foremost thing is to share your feelings with others and not to bottle them up. Emotional support provided by friends, family and other near & dear ones is the key to preventing a relapse because a patient requires constant motivation at every step.
- The second important thing is self-control. No matter how much motivation and support the other people provide you it is your will-power that can actually prevent a relapse. After successfully completing an opiate detox recovery program, most of the patients are tempted towards the harmful drugs again at some point. You need to possess an extra amount of self control that will help you refrain from touching opiates again.
- The company of friends who can lead you your older habits. If you manage to avoid the company of acquaintances who consume drugs & alcohol then the chances of recovery without a relapse increases manifolds.